Hideaki Sorachi’s action-comedy manga series Gintama comes to life in a full-length feature film titled after the manga series of the same name from director Yuichi Fukuda. The film will be shown in Canada at select Cineplex locations in Japanese with English subtitles.

An alien group has overrun Japan, driving many samurai into hiding and giving up their trade. One such samurai, Gintoki Sakata, becomes a handyman, filling in wherever he’s needed to work. Another swordsman approaches Gintoki with a job, to seek out and secure the cursed sword Benizakura. If Benizakura falls into the wrong hands, the consequences for humanity become dire.

The cast of Gintama includes:

Shun Oguri as Gintoki Sakata

Masaki Suda as Shinpachi Shimura

Kanna Hashimoto as Kagura

Masaki Okada as Kotaro Katsura

Masami Nagasawa as Tae Shimura

Murotsuyoshi as Gengai Hiraga

Kankuro Nakamura as Isao Kondo

Yuya Yagira as Toshiro Hijikata

Ryo Yoshizawa as Sogo Okita

Ken Yasuda as Testuya Murata

Akari Hayami as Tetsuko Murata

Hirofumi Arai as Nizo Okada

Jiro Sato as Henpeita Takechi

Nanao as Matako Kijima

Tsuyoshi Domoto as Shinsuke Takasugi

Gintama was originally released in Japanese theatres on July 14th, 2017.

Kick off 2018 with Japanese pop culture, comics, gaming and horror by attending a convention this year in British Columbia. While there’s plenty of events in and around Metro Vancouver, the rest of the province still has a few places for fans to band together for fun on the island and interior.

For more information, lists of guests and to register, visit the links below to use each event’s web site.

Tsukino-Con – February 10th – 12th, 2018 at the University of Victoria in Victoria, BC
Tsukino-Con celebrates everything anime and manga related for fans on Vancouver Island in a fun and friendly environment.

AniRevo Winter – February 11th – 12th, 2018 at the LaSalle College of Vancouver in Vancouver, BC
AniRevo Winter is a two-day event to bridge the year-long wait until their summer convention, filled with guests, artists, vendors and more.

Harumatsuri – March 17th, 2018 at the Nikkei National Museum and Cultural Centre in Burnaby, BC
Anime Evolution is holding a one-day event at the Nikkei National Museum and Cultural Centre in the format of a traditional Japanese festival, the matsuri.

Kelowna Fan Experience – March 23rd – 25th, 2018 at the Kelowna Community Theatre in Kelowna, BC
There’s something for everyone at the Kelowna Fan Xpo who are into anime, manga, comics, sci-fi, movies, gaming and horror.

AniRevo Summer – August 3rd – 5th, 2018 at the Vancouver Convention Centre in Vancouver, BC
AniRevo his quickly expanded to become Metro Vancouver’s largest Japanese pop culture festival with guests from North America and Asia, vendors, panels and more.

Vancouver Halloween Parade and Expo – September 28th – 30th, 2018 at Robson Square in Vancouver, BC
Don your favourite outfit and join the “world’s largest cosplay stage” as you parade through Vancouver’s downtown core! There’s more than just a parade with guests, panels, and musical performances.

The immense universe of music from the Final Fantasy franchise returns to Vancouver for another performance of Distant Worlds: Music from Final Fantasy on Friday, June 1st, 2018 at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre.

Led by conductor Arnie Roth, this 100-piece orchestra and chorus recreates the many themes, ballads, melodies and operas from more than 30 years of this popular video game series. Complementing the live music are scenes from the Final Fantasy games, presented in HD, enveloping both the visual and aural senses.

Tickets for this single evening show go on sale at 10:00 am Friday, January 19th, 2018.

Vancouver is the only Canadian stop mentioned so far for 2018. Other cities on the tour include Kansas City, MO, Los Angeles, CA, St. Petersburg, FL, Portland, OR, Paris, France, Cleveland, OH, and San Francisco, CA.

Neku makes a return on the Nintendo Switch in The World Ends with You: Final Remix.

Nintendo kicked off 2018 with a brief Nintendo Direct video this morning announcing a bunch of upcoming titles for the Switch console.

After releasing a decade earlier on the Nintendo DS, The World Ends with You: Final Remix returns with improved graphics and an epilogue building on the existing storyline. Players can use the Joy Con controllers or the touch screen to interact with the game. This Square-Enix adventure is expected sometime this year.

The Pokémon x Tekken cross-over fighting game Pokkén Tournament DX gets two DLC packs this year. “Wave 1” includes Aegislash with Mimikyu and Mega Rayquaza as support Pokémon, while “Wave 2” includes Blastoise with Celebi and Mew for support. “Wave 1” is available January 31st, 2018, followed by “Wave 2” on March 23rd, 2018.

Kirby Star Allies brings everyone’s favourite pink ball onto the Switch with new abilities, including being an artist and using spiderwebs to capture enemies. Multiplayer functionality allows up to four friends to partake in the fun. Kirby Star Allies goes on sale March 16th, 2018.

Hyrule Warriors: Definitive Edition is getting the Switch treatment. In addition to the existing 29 playable characters from the Wii U and Nintendo 3DS versions, their levels and downloadable content, Link and Zelda can don attire from The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. Two players can play together sharing the Joy Con controllers in mobile mode. This title is scheduled for Spring 2018.

The ball is in your court with Mario Tennis Aces. Enhanced gameplay makes guessing an opponents next move far more formidable. A new story mode brings more ways to play, and challenging boss battles. This title is scheduled for Spring 2018.

It’s the epic story of survival in Ys VIII: Lacrimosa of Dana. Adol barely makes it off of a sinking ship with his life and ends up on a deserted island. Enlisting the help of other survivors to build a camp and defend themselves from the vicious inhabitants of the island thru fast-paced battles. Ys VIII: Lacrimosa of Dana is expected in summer 2018.

New downloadable content for Super Mario Odyssey makes for balloon-popping fun! Upon completing the main story, a new mode called Balloon World appears with two modes: Hide It and Find It. In Hide It, players must hide balloons in various worlds for others to find. In Find It, the player must find balloons secreted away by others. This update becomes available in February 2018.

SNK HEROINES ~Tag Team Frenzy~ brings SNK’s famous idols together in a tag-team fighting game for the Nintendo Switch. Players can utilize special attacks and items to give themselves the advantage, making victory all the sweeter. This title is expected in summer 2018.

It’s payday! Pull of some expert pilferage with your friends locally or a world away with PAYDAY 2. Updated to take advantage of the Switch’s touchscreen and HD Rumble makes holdups that more sweeter. A new character exclusive to the Switch version introduces Joy, a Japanese hacker into the fray. PAYDAY 2 goes on sale February 27th, 2018.

Explore a forest and interact with its colourful flora and fauna in Fe. Advance through the forest by singing with the animals and plants to unlock its secrets; these songs come alive with feedback from the HD Rumble in the Joy Con controllers. Fe launches on February 16th, 2018.

In Celeste, Madeline must climb a mountain, using any terrain available, granted she has the stamina for it. Using her mid-air dash, Celeste can overcome obstacles in this dangerous environment. Adjust the difficulty by playing in Assist Mode, or unlock the B-side chapters for arduous adventures. Celeste launches on January 25th, 2018.

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